New Books

Reviewed by Amy O'Neill Houck

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Geometrics: A new Way to Crochet
by Ruthie Marks
Kooler Design Studio/Leisure Arts


Ruthie Marks, in her new book, Geometrics, has chosen a subject close to my heart -- math, as it relates to the craft of crochet. She’s taken three concepts and presented them in an accessible way that’s not fussy or high-minded.

When I get a new crochet book, I often jump right to the patterns. In fact, that’s what I did with Ruthie’s book, but when I came back later to read the introduction, the whole book took on new meaning. Ruthie explains that she’s teaching how to use three ancient, though not arcane or difficult, mathematical principles. They are dragon curves, which she found, like I did, through thrift-shop crocheted hot-pads; the Fibonacci sequence, used by knitters for eons but not applied much to crochet; and the golden triangle, which she lets on was actually discovered by Theano, the wife of famed mathematician Pythagoras, (maybe Theano was a crafter). The book goes on to teach the concepts step by step, with fun projects that increase in complexity as you go. There are garments, accessories, and projects for the home. What I find most empowering is the ability, once the concepts are mastered, to go off and apply them to my own crocheting. Thanks Ruthie!
Bead & Felted Tapestry Crochet
by Carol Ventura
Self-published

Carol Ventura's new book  takes the art that she loves so much to a new level. In her first two books, Carol offered important historical information on how tapestry crochet has been practiced across the world, as well as in-depth instruction on creating colorwork patterns and designing your own charts. Because of crochet's tendency to slant, she also created a special template that allows one to make crochet "pictures" that look normal.



The new book teaches how to combine tapestry crochet with beads, how to felt your crochet, and how to felt with beads, thus broadening the creative options in several directions. It has a strong how-to section for both right and left-handed crocheters.

Carol's designs are inspired by everything from Salvador Dali to native art of Central America. Some of the most beautiful projects are her containers. There are stunning geometric patterns like her beaded Amulet bag, a chevron change purse, a diamond beaded bracelet, and lovely pictorial patterns like the "Let's Face it Tote," and the Breast Cancer Awareness purse.


Carol self-publishes all her books and does a particularly fine job: layout, comprehensibility, and photos are all of the highest professional quality.

NOTE: For a very interesting look at how the book was created visit

http://iweb.tntech.edu/cventura/publish.htm
For more about Carol and Tapestry Crochet visit http://www.tapestrycrochet.com/

Projects from the book at right

Get Hooked
by Kim Werker and Cythia Frenette
Watson-Guptill Publicaitons

Kim Werker's Get Hooked is the book my young crochet students have been looking for. True to form, Kim, author of Teach Yourself Visually Crochet, the gold standard of crochet "how-to," has created a great introduction with teen-friendly beginner instructions complemented by photographs and illustrations. Cynthia Frenette has done an amazing job illustrating this book. The drawings are a big part of what makes it so much fun. She's given it a cool cartoon feel without being silly.

Three simple projects teach the basics, and then it's on to some wild projects, including a sushi-roll pillow, Cecily Keim's punk gloves, and --my favorite -- an amigurumi-style monkey key fob. The patterns progress in difficulty, and include colorwork, motifs like flowers and hearts, and even a crocheted skirt. I find many of the projects, like the Beauty Bin and the Ring Cave, or the felted purse, fun for crocheters of all ages. It's great to have something this good to recommend to the next generation of crochet fanatics.

Check out our interview with Kim Werker here.

Read all about Doris Chan's new book, Amazing Crochet Lace, in our interview with Doris here.

Amy O'Neill Houck is a writer, teacher and designer who blogs at The Hook and I
(http://hookandi.blogspot.com).
Her patterns can be found in Crochet Today, Crochet Me, with several yarn companies and on her web site http://aohdesigns.com.